Mobile electronic devices such as mobile telephones and smartphones, tablet computers, cellular-connected laptop computers, and similar devices are ever increasing in popularity. While these mobile electronic devices continue to evolve, with an ever increasing list of features and capabilities, the devices still suffer from a long-standing problem: their vulnerability to the elements. These devices are susceptible to damage from general wear and tear, most noticeably the scratching or the devices' bodies and screens. More importantly, the devices are vulnerable to damage from water and dust. Protective cases have therefore been developed in order to protect these devices.
Conventional protective cases offer somewhat enhanced face, side, and back scratch and shock protection for the mobile electronic device, but leave the screen, switches, and ports (e.g., headphone ports, power ports, data ports, etc.) exposed to the environment. Some models may include a screen protector that may be applied as a separate component from the protective case. As these screen protectors are not an incorporated component of the product, however, they protect the screen from scratching, but they do not protect the mobile electronic device from water or dust. Other conventional protective cases may provide some protection against water and dust, but only for the electronics and not the screen.
Protective cases that do provide water and dust protection for the complete devices may not allow for view and/or use of the device's touch screen when the device is in the protective case. More adept conventional protective cases may allow a user to view and use the device's touch screen when the device is inside the protective case. However, while these cases may provide enhanced protection for the complete electronic device, the protective cases are large and cumbersome, turning a small and, some would say, elegant mobile electronic device into a large, inelegant, plastic-covered device.
In addition, some of the more adept conventional protective cases protect ports (e.g., headphone ports, power ports, data ports, etc.) of the mobile device with rubber plugs at ends of rubber flaps. Typically, the plugs insert in the ports to seal the ports from water and dust ingress. The rubber plugs rely on friction from the mobile electronic device's ports to hold the plugs in place. This often results in loose plugs or in blocked ports when the plugs break off from the flaps. Also, when a plug is unplugged to gain access to a port, the flap is left hanging which increases the chances that the flap might catch on objects in the environment of the mobile electronic device and brake off. Also, in some protective cases, a user must continually hold the flap open with their fingers for continued access to the port because the rubbery flap resists pivoting and is biased towards getting the plug back in the port or towards the flap covering the port.